Volume 17, Issue 2 (March & April- In press 2026)
BCN 2026, 17(2): 0-0 |
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Afshani M, Mohammadi A. Structural and Functional Brain Connectivity in Patients with Borderline Personality Disorder Compared to Healthy Controls: A Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study. BCN 2026; 17 (2)
URL: http://bcn.iums.ac.ir/article-1-3446-en.html
URL: http://bcn.iums.ac.ir/article-1-3446-en.html
1- Student Research Committee, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2- Neuroscience Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2- Neuroscience Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Abstract:
Purpose: Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a syndrome that significantly impacts a person’s capacity to cope with their emotions. Here, we aimed to demonstrate whether emotionally unstable personality traits are associated with alterations in brain structural and functional connectivity in individuals with BPD.
Methods: Twenty BPD participants and sixteen healthy controls (HCs) underwent structural and functional MRI during the Cyberball task. Functional connectivity multivariate pattern analyses (fc-MVPA), cortical thickness (CT), and gray matter volume (GMV) measures were extracted. Functional analyses were conducted using the CONN and SPM12 toolboxes. To ensure the reliability and accuracy of our fMRI analysis, we have implemented rigorous automated quality control measures. The analyses at the group level were performed with a general linear model (GLM).
Results: We did not identify any overall structural or functional differences between BPD patients and HCs. In patients with BPD, higher scores on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) were associated with reduced GMV in several brain regions, including the left cerebellum VI, left caudate, right temporal pole, and right cerebellum V and VI. The CT analyses further revealed significant inverse correlations with physical neglect in the left superior frontal gyrus, right middle frontal gyrus, and right postcentral gyrus. The fc-MVPA demonstrated that emotional neglect scores were inversely correlated with connectivity in the right temporal pole. Additional fc-MVPA findings indicated inverse associations between HAM-D scores and both the left precentral and postcentral gyri, as well as between sexual abuse scores and connectivity in the left and right cerebellum IX.
Conclusion: This study localizes the emotionally unstable personality networks associated with abnormal brain connectivity in BPD, guiding future interventions for early diagnosis and treatment.
Methods: Twenty BPD participants and sixteen healthy controls (HCs) underwent structural and functional MRI during the Cyberball task. Functional connectivity multivariate pattern analyses (fc-MVPA), cortical thickness (CT), and gray matter volume (GMV) measures were extracted. Functional analyses were conducted using the CONN and SPM12 toolboxes. To ensure the reliability and accuracy of our fMRI analysis, we have implemented rigorous automated quality control measures. The analyses at the group level were performed with a general linear model (GLM).
Results: We did not identify any overall structural or functional differences between BPD patients and HCs. In patients with BPD, higher scores on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) were associated with reduced GMV in several brain regions, including the left cerebellum VI, left caudate, right temporal pole, and right cerebellum V and VI. The CT analyses further revealed significant inverse correlations with physical neglect in the left superior frontal gyrus, right middle frontal gyrus, and right postcentral gyrus. The fc-MVPA demonstrated that emotional neglect scores were inversely correlated with connectivity in the right temporal pole. Additional fc-MVPA findings indicated inverse associations between HAM-D scores and both the left precentral and postcentral gyri, as well as between sexual abuse scores and connectivity in the left and right cerebellum IX.
Conclusion: This study localizes the emotionally unstable personality networks associated with abnormal brain connectivity in BPD, guiding future interventions for early diagnosis and treatment.
Keywords: Borderline Personality Disorder, Functional Neuroimaging, Emotion Regulation, Emotional Abuse, Gray Matter
Type of Study: Original |
Subject:
Computational Neuroscience
Received: 2025/12/15 | Accepted: 2026/04/25 | Published: 2026/05/9
Received: 2025/12/15 | Accepted: 2026/04/25 | Published: 2026/05/9
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